hickey

See also: Hickey

English

A hickey (sense 1) on the neck.

sense 7

Alternative forms

hicky, hickie

Etymology

Unknown.

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA^(key): /ˈhɪk.i/
Audio (General Australian): (file)
Rhymes: -ɪki

Noun

hickey (plural hickeys)

(originally US, slang) A bruise-like mark made during petting by pressing the mouth to the skin on one’s partner’s body and sucking. [from 1934]
Synonyms: love bite, knot
- 2003, “Stand Up”, in Chicken-n-Beer, performed by Ludacris ft. Shawnna:
  But Louis Vuitton bras all over your breasts / Got me wanting to put hickeys all over your chest
- 2005, William Cane, The Art of Kissing, 2nd edition, St. Martin's Griffin, →ISBN, page 128:
  When it comes to hickeys, the best I can tell you is that a lot of girls cover them with makeup or a turtleneck shirt. But let me close with a final thought. Never be ashamed of your hickeys. Show them off proudly as badges of love.
A similar mark made by the pressure of a musical instrument such as a violin or viola against the neck.
(informal, slang) An object whose name is unknown or cannot be recalled. [from 1909]
Synonyms: see Thesaurus:thingy
(printing) A printing defect caused by foreign matter on the printing surface resulting in a ring where the ink is missing, appearing as a spot of ink surrounded by a halo, or as an unprinted spot within a solid printed area.
(printing, informal) A serif or other ornamentation on type.
- 2008, American Printer, volume 125, page 63:
  Years ago, there were internal company standards for dark center (ink color) hickeys and for white voids in solids/type.
- 2018, Paul W. Ross, Revival: The Handbook of Software for Engineers and Scientists:
  It is generally believed, by those who study such things, that serif typefaces are easier to read when reading a lot of words. The hickeys (serifs) on each letter tend to push our eye toward the next letter.
Local swelling in a tissue area, especially skin, often due to injury. [from 1915]
A tool for making smooth, semicircular bends in conduit and pipe.
Synonym: conduit bender
(US, slang, business, finance) An unintended negative outcome or loss in regards to a deal or action.
take a hickey

Farmer Jones took a hickey on his soybean crop when the flood washed the seeds away.

Derived terms

doohickey, dohickey

Translations

bruise-like mark

Breton: pok kloz
Bulgarian: смучка f (smučka)
Catalan: xuclet (ca)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 吻痕 (zh) (wěnhén), (slang; literally, "strawberry") 草莓 (zh) (cǎoméi)
Czech: cucflek (cs) m
Danish: sugemærke n
Dutch: zuigzoen (nl) ?, zuigplek (nl) f, zuigvlek f
Estonian: maasikas (et)
Finnish: fritsu (fi), huunpurema
French: suçon (fr) m, sucette (fr) f (Canadian)
Galician: chupón m, chucho m
German: Knutschfleck (de) m
Hebrew: נשיכת אהבה (he)
Hungarian: szívásnyom, kiszívás
Icelandic: sogblettur m
Irish: plaicín suirí m
Italian: succhiotto (it) m
Japanese: キスマーク (ja) (kisumāku)
Macedonian: сли́вка f (slívka)
Norwegian: sugemerke n
Polish: malinka (pl) f
Portuguese: chupão (pt)
Russian: засо́с (ru) m (zasós)
Spanish: chupetón (es) m (Spain), chupón (es) m (Latin America), chupete (es) m (Mexico, slang), mordisco amoroso m, moretón (es) m
Swedish: sugmärke (sv) n
Tagalog: tsikinini
Turkish: aşk ısırığı

referring to an object whose name is unknown or cannot be recalled

Czech: bazmek (cs) m
Dutch: ding (nl) n, spul (nl) n
Finnish: juttu (fi)
French: truc (fr) m, machin (fr) m, bidule (fr) f
Spanish: cacharro (es) m, chisme (es) m, vaina (es) f (Caribbean, Central America, Colombia), coso (es) m (River Plate region)
Swedish: mackapär (sv), mojäng (sv), grunka (sv), manick (sv), grej (sv)

printing defect caused by foreign matter on the printing surface

Czech: pecka (cs) f

swelling in a tissue area

Dutch: zwelling (nl) f, knobbel (nl) m
Finnish: patti (fi)

tool for making smooth, semicircular bends in conduit and pipe